BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
[0001] The present invention relates to a deprotection method for removing a protecting
group from a polymer obtained by polymerization while protecting a functional group,
or a polymer obtained by modification of a side chain. In particular, the invention
relates to a method of producing a polymer to be used as a chemically amplified photoresist
material.
2. Description of the Related Art
[0002] Along with an increase in the integration density of integrated circuits, formation
of more minute patterns has been required in recent years. In processing into patterns
having a size of 0.2 µm or less, chemically amplified resist using an acid as a catalyst
has mainly been used. As an exposure light source upon this processing, high energy
radiation such as KrF excimer laser light, ArF excimer laser light, EUV, or electron
beams has been used. In particular, the electron beam lithography used as a microfabrication
technology has been inevitable as a processing method of a photomask blank to be used
for the formation of a photomask for manufacturing a semiconductor.
[0003] In general, a resin comprised by a resist composition and designed for a KrF excimer
laser light or electron beam as high energy radiation for pattern exposure comprises
a unit structure having a phenolic hydroxyl group as a functional group giving good
substrate adhesion, while development of resist for EUV exposure has also been promoted
in this direction. As a typical example of the unit structure having a phenolic hydroxyl
group, 4-hydroxystyrene is well-known. A hydroxystyrene monomer does not have high
stability so that a polymer having a hydroxystyrene unit is often obtained by polymerizing
or copolymerizing an acetoxystyrene monomer having good stability and polymerizability
and then deacetylating the resulting polyacetoxystyrene derivative by using methanolysis
with triethylamine/methanol or by using a base such as ammonia water, sodium hydroxide,
sodium methoxide or hydroxylamine hydrochloride.
[0004] JP 01-188502A/1989 discloses a method of carrying out a deprotection reaction of
a polymer having an acetoxystyrene unit structure and being a typical resist material,
in the suspension as an aqueous reaction mixture. JP 01-188502A/1989 discloses many
usable bases. These bases may be usable even in a homogeneous deprotection reaction
conducted by dissolving both a polymer protected with an acyl group, which is a reaction
substrate, and a deprotecting reagent in an organic solvent.
[0005] Although the polymer having a hydroxystyrene unit structure to be used as a base
polymer for the resist includes a homopolymer of hydroxystyrene, a functional structure
may be introduced into the polymer in the form of an ester bond as a controlling factor
of the physical properties or functions of the resulting resist. In order to synthesize
such a polymer, it is the common practice to obtain a targeted polymer by copolymerizing
(meth)acrylic acid ester derived from an aliphatic alcohol having the above-described
functional structure (for example,
JP 2002-62652) or vinyl aromatic carboxylic acid ester (for example,
JP 2007-254495) with acetoxystyrene or a vinyl aromatic compound having a phenolic hydroxyl group
protected with an acetyl group and then deprotecting the resulting polymer. The term
"(meth)acrylic acid" means methacrylic acid and/or acrylic acid.
[0006] In deprotection of such a polymer comprising an ester derived from an aliphatic alcohol
as described above, selective cleavage of a phenol ester is required while maintaining
the ester derived from an aliphatic alcohol. Accordingly, hydrolysis with a weak base
has conventionally been conducted. As a stable industrial production process, it is
difficult to adopt a reaction in use of ammonia water as a weak base, because volatility
of ammonia prevents the reaction temperature from being higher. A methanolysis deprotection
reaction in methanol in use of triethylamine as a base is therefore ordinarily used.
The triethylamine is an organic base.
[0008] EP 0 314 488 A2 (Hoechst Celanese Corp) relates to polymers of 4-acetoxystyrene being hydrolysed
to polymers of 4-hydroxystyrene using aqueous nitrogen bases.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] Since the methanolysis using triethylamine is a reaction having a low reactivity,
a reaction with high selectivity as described above can be realized. When an ester
derived from a phenolic hydroxyl group and an ester derived from an aliphatic alcohol
are present together, the ester derived from a phenolic hydroxyl group can be decomposed
selectively. This method, however, requires a considerably long reaction time so that
it is not suitable for improving productivity.
[0010] An object of the present invention is to provide a method of deprotecting a protected
polymer, the method being capable of, in the deprotection reaction of a polymer comprising
a unit structure having a phenolic hydroxyl group protected with an acyl group as
described above, deacylating the polymer in a shorter period of time while maintaining
the other structure and being capable of taking out the deacylated polymer while highly
suppressing the contamination of the deacylated polymer with a substance other than
the polymer taking part in the reaction.
[0011] With the foregoing in view, the present inventors have carried out various investigations.
As a result, it has been found that when a primary or secondary amine compound is
used as a base in a deprotection reaction of a polymer comprising a unit structure
having a phenolic hydroxyl group protected with an acyl group, the reaction proceeds
very rapidly compared with a reaction using triethylamine in agreement with as information
of the general organic chemistry, but there is a higher risk that an amide, which
is produced simultaneously as a byproduct of the reaction, is present as an impurity
in the purified polymer obtained as a final product. It has been also found, however,
that contamination with the byproduct amide can be suppressed when a deprotection
reaction of a polymer comprising a unit structure having a phenolic hydroxyl group
protected with an acyl group is performed by using a primary or secondary amine having
high water solubility, leading to the completion of the present invention.
[0012] The present invention provides a method of deprotecting a protected polymer as set
forth in claim 1. According to this method of deprotecting, the reaction time can
be reduced greatly compared with the method using triethylamine, because of use of
the primary or secondary amine compound. In addition, since the ClogP value is 1.00
or less, an amide having high water solubility is produced as a byproduct of the deprotection
reaction, facilitating removal of the amide in the purification step for obtaining
a purified polymer.
[0013] The primary or secondary amine compound is represented by the following formula (1):
HNR
1 2-nR
2n (1)
[0014] In the formula (1), R
1 represents a hydrogen atom or a linear, branched or cyclic C
1-6 alkyl group, R
2 independently represents a linear, branched or cyclic C
2-7 alkyl group comprising at least one oxygen atom or at least one nitrogen atom, two
R
2s may be coupled to each other to form a cyclic structure containing at least one
oxygen atom and/or at least one nitrogen atom, and n stands for 1 or 2.
[0015] By using the deprotection method of a polymer comprising a unit structure having
a phenolic hydroxyl group protected with an acyl group according to the present invention,
deprotection can be completed in a short period of time and a highly pure deprotected
polymer can be obtained easily from a reaction mixture for deprotection.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0016] Polymers for resist film to be used in the photolithography process in which pattern
exposure to high energy radiation is performed to change the solubility of an exposed
portion of the polymer in a developer, followed by development to obtain a desired
pattern, are required to have various functions. The function of changing the solubility
in the developer as described above is one of the most important functions of the
polymer, but adhesion of the polymer to a substrate to be processed is also one of
the most important functions.
[0017] The design of the polymer sometimes differs utterly, depending on the kind of the
high energy radiations used for exposure. A polymer having an aromatic skeleton is
useful as a polymer for exposure to a KrF excimer laser light, electron beam or EUV.
When the polymer having an aromatic skeleton is used, a phenolic hydroxyl group is
usually employed as a functional group for imparting the polymer with the above-described
adhesion function. A base polymer is therefore designed to have a predetermined amount
of repeating unit having a phenolic hydroxyl group. It is because a partial structure
comprising an aromatic ring having a phenolic hydroxyl group has good etching resistance
and preferable polarization. These characteristics of this structure have been utilized
without limiting to a chemically amplified resist since very early days when the aqueous
developable positive resist was used.
[0018] 4-Hydroxystyrene is used frequently as the repeating unit having a phenolic hydroxyl
group. Since a hydroxystyrene has low stability as a monomer, a polymer having a phenolic
hydroxyl group is usually obtained by carrying out polymerization by protecting a
phenolic hydroxyl group with a protecting group and then deprotecting the polymer.
In polymerizable compounds such as indene and acenaphthylene, derivatives having a
phenolic hydroxyl group (
JP 2003-84440A,
JP 2002-244297A and so on) have a relatively high stability. Even when such a material is used, demetallization
treatment after polymerization reduces the treatment efficiency when the material
has a free phenolic hydroxyl group. Accordingly, employed may be a method for producing
a base polymer, comprising the steps of providing a protected polymer at first, subjecting
the protected polymer to the demetallization treatment, and then deprotecting the
treated polymer to obtain a base polymer.
[0019] Specific examples of the compound having a phenolic hydroxyl group include hydroxystyrene
such as 4-hydroxystyrene, 4-hydroxy-3-methylstyrene and 3-hydroxystyrene; hydroxyvinylnaphthalene;
hydroxyvinylanthracene; hydroxyindene; and
hydroxyacenaphthylene.
[0020] Many methods of protecting a phenolic hydroxyl group are known as general methods
of organic chemistry. Protection with an acyl group, which can be removed under a
basic condition, is a useful method for the synthesis of a polymer further comprising
a repeating unit having an acid-labile group (acid decomposable protecting group)
which controls the function of changing the solubility of the resist polymer in a
developer. Accordingly, the protection with an acyl group has been used frequently.
[0021] The protection with an acyl group may be employed for a monomer for polymerization
(not described in detail herein because of a fundamental method in organic synthesis)
or a synthetic intermediate of a monomer (for example, JP 01-139546A/1989). An acyl-protected
monomer or a mixture containing an acyl-protected monomer may be then polymerized
to produce an acyl-protected polymer. Protection with an acyl group may be performed
after formation of a polymer for the purpose of facilitating removal of a metal or
for the other purpose.
[0022] The acyl group is usually represented by R-CO-. A monomer is usually purified by
distillation prior to polymerization. As a protecting group, an acyl group having
7 or less carbon atoms is usually selected because of easy distillation. Industrially,
an acetyl group is often employed as a protecting group. Most of the following description
will be based on the examples where an acetyl group, which is the most widely used
protecting group, is used for protection. However, it is evident that the deprotection
method of the present invention is also applicable to the other acyl group.
[0023] Radical polymerization is ordinarily employed for the polymerization of an acyl-protected
monomer or a mixture containing an acyl-protected monomer. Cationic polymerization
may be employed in some cases. A number of methods are known for synthesizing a polymer
for a base resin of a resist composition by radical polymerization (for example, the
above-described
JP 01-188502A/1999,
JP 2002-062652A,
JP 2007-254495A,
JP 2003-084440A,
JP 2002-244297A and
JP 01-139546A/1989). The polymer to which the deprotection method of the present invention is applied
can also be obtained according to the known methods. Copolymerization of a (meth)acrylic
acid ester as well as a compound having, as a polymerization active site, a double
bond conjugated to an aromatic compound such as acetoxystyrene, indene or acenaphthylene
(for example,
JP 2002-062652A,
JP 2007-254495A,
JP 2003-084440A and
JP 2002-244297A) is also often conducted.
[0024] In the deprotection reaction of a polymer comprising a repeating unit having a phenolic
hydroxyl group protected with an acyl group as described above, the polymer being
to be used as a resist material, a weak base has been selected and in many cases,
tertiary amine such as triethylamine has been used according to the requests such
as no contamination due to a metal such as sodium, stable reaction results with high
reproducibility and no deteriorating effect on the other partial structures. A solvolysis
reaction using triethylamine together with water or alcohol has been used for various
polymers because the reaction is mild and does not deteriorate the other partial structures.
However, the solvolysis reaction is very slow and economically disadvantageous.
[0025] The present inventors therefore have attempted deprotection with a primary amine
as a deprotection reaction having a high reaction rate. As well-known in the general
organic chemistry, the deprotection reaction with a primary amine has a high reaction
rate because a nucleophilic reaction of an amine compound to an acyl group occurs
preferentially to a solvolysis reaction. When an ester structure derived from an aliphatic
alcohol is present in the polymer, there is a possibility that no selectivity between
the alcohol-derived ester structure and the phenol-derived ester structure is obtained.
However, the result of the actual attempt has revealed that selectivity between two
ester structures derived from different hydroxyl groups can be ensured, depending
on the reaction condition selected. However, it has been found based on isolation
of the polymer that, for example, deprotection of poly(acetoxystyrene-t-butoxystyrene)
by using n-butylamine results in that a trace of n-butylacetamide produced as a byproduct
of the deprotection reaction is present in the deprotected polymer obtained after
purification. The amide compound produced as a byproduct of a nucleophilic reaction
of the amine compound is almost neutral so that it becomes an impurity having difficulty
in being removed in comparison with triethylamine which can be removed by using an
aqueous solution of a weak acid. On the other hand, the amide compound is basic enough
to trap a strong acid so that when it remains, it has a high risk of affecting a resist
sensitivity or pattern shape. In addition, the amide compound that has remained without
being removed may be a cause of development defects.
[0026] The present inventors have found that when an amine compound having high water solubility
is selected as the primary or secondary amine compound, the amide compound can be
removed into the aqueous solution by using an ordinary purification method based on
re-precipitation or two-phase separation.
[0027] The present invention relates to a method of deprotecting a polymer comprising a
repeating unit in which a phenolic hydroxyl group is protected with an acyl group
as described above by using with the below-described amine compound. The amine compound
used here is a primary or secondary amine compound having high reactivity with the
acyl group as described above and having a ClogP value, which is a factor showing
water solubility derived from a chemical structure, of 1.00 or less in order to ensure
water solubility of an amide which is a byproduct of the reaction with the acyl group.
[0028] The terms "logP" and "ClogP" will be described.
[0029] The term "logP" is a logarithm of an 1-octanol/water partition coefficient of a compound
and means, in the partition equilibrium when the compound is dissolved as a solute
into two liquid phase solvents of 1-octanol and water, a ratio of the equilibrium
concentrations of the solute in the respective solvents. It is usually expressed in
the form of "logP", that is, logarithm to the base 10. This means that logP is an
index of hypophilicity (hydrophobicity) and the greater this value, the more hydrophobic,
while the smaller this value, the more hydrophilic.
[0030] "ClogP" is a "calculated logP (ClogP)" determined by the fragment approach of Hansch
and Leo in the program "CLOGP" (Daylight CIS). The fragment approach is based on the
chemical structure of a compound and consideration of the number of atoms and the
type of chemical bond (
A. Leo, Comprehensive Medicinal Chemistry, Vol. 4, C. Hansch, P. G. Sammens, J. B.
Taylor and C. A. Ramsden, Eds., p. 295, Pergamon Press, 1990). The "ClogP" is the most reliable and widely used estimate of a logP value. In the
present invention, either of the measured logP value or ClogP determined by calculation
according to the program CLOGP is usable, but ClogP value is used preferably as a
standard.
[0032] 8-Hydroxyoctylamine has a ClogP value of 1.05 and has low water solubility so that
it is not suited for the object of the present invention.
[0033] The secondary amine compound having two tertiary carbons as two carbon atoms coupled
to the nitrogen atom of the amino group are omitted. For example, 2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-4-hydroxypiperidine
has a ClogP value of 0.92 and shows desirable water solubility. However, two carbon
atoms of the compound coupled to the nitrogen atom, which is a basic center, are tertiary
so that the compound has low nucleophilicity and is not suited for the object of the
present invention.
[0034] Compounds having a ClogP value of 0 or less have particularly high water solubility
so that a byproduct amide can be removed particularly easily from the purified polymer.
[0035] In order to adjust the ClogP value to 1 or less, it is usually a standard to design
the amine compound so that in the formula (1), a total amount [C] of carbon atoms
comprised by R
1 and R
2 and a total amount [ON] of an oxygen atom and a nitrogen atom comprised by R
2 satisfy the following inequality: [C]<{([ON]+1)× 4}. In order to enhance the water
solubility further and thereby effectively achieve the advantage of the invention,
it is preferred to design the amine compound so that they satisfy the following inequality:
[C]≤{([ON]+1)× 3}.
[0036] The primary or secondary amine compound used as a deprotecting reagent is represented
by the following formula (1):
HNR
1 2-nR
2n (1)
[0037] In the formula (1), R
1 represents a hydrogen atom or a linear, branched or cyclic C
1-6 alkyl group, R
2 independently represents a linear, branched or cyclic C
2-7 alkyl group comprising at least one oxygen atom or at least one nitrogen atom, two
R
2(s) may be coupled to each other to form a cyclic structure containing at least one
oxygen atom and/or at least one nitrogen atom, and n stands for 1 or 2. It is described
that R
2 represents the alkyl group. With regard to R
2, an atom directly coupled to a nitrogen atom represented by N in the formula (1)
is a carbon atom.
[0038] As defined in the formula (1), the nitrogen atom as a basic center comprises one
or more alkyl groups (with the proviso that an atom directly bound to the nitrogen
atom as a basic center is a carbon atom) comprising at least one oxygen atom or at
least one nitrogen atom, and the alkyl group comprising at least one oxygen atom or
at least one nitrogen atom is selected from linear, branched or cyclic C
2-7 alkyl groups. Further, two alkyl groups comprising at least one oxygen atom or at
least one nitrogen atom may be coupled to each other to form a cyclic structure comprising
the nitrogen atom as a basic center, or to form a cyclic structure comprising at least
one oxygen atom or at least one nitrogen atom, separately from the nitrogen atom as
a basic center.
[0039] The base represented by the formula (1) may comprise a linear, branched or cyclic
C
1-6 alkyl group as R
1.
[0040] Examples of the linear, branched or cyclic C
1-6 alkyl group may include methyl, ethyl, propyl, isopropyl, butyl, pentyl, hexyl, and
branched alkyl groups and cyclohexyl groups which are structural isomers thereof.
[0041] As described above, R
2 is selected from linear, branched or cyclic C
2-7 alkyl groups comprising at least one oxygen atom or at least one nitrogen atom. Further,
two alkyl groups comprising at least one oxygen atom or at least one nitrogen atom
may be coupled to each other to form a cyclic structure comprising a nitrogen atom
as the basic center. Moreover, it may form a cyclic structure comprising at least
one oxygen atom or at least one nitrogen atom, separately from the nitrogen atom as
the basic center.
[0042] When R
2 comprises at least one oxygen atom, alkoxy-substituted alkyl group is preferably
selected. Preferred examples may include 2-methoxyethyl, 2-ethoxyethyl, 2-propoxyethyl,
2-isopropoxyethyl, 2-methoxypropyl, 2-ethoxypropyl, 2-propoxypropyl, 2-isopropoxypropyl,
3-methoxypropyl, 3-ethoxypropyl, 3-propoxypropyl and 3-isopropoxypropyl. The alkoxy
group may preferably have one to three carbon atoms. When the alkyl group is not substituted
with an alkoxy group or has carbon atoms greater than 7, the resulting basic compound
may have water solubility reduced and become difficult to be removed from the polymer
solution after reaction. When the alkyl group is substituted with an alkoxy group,
the compound in which the alkoxy group is placed on the carbon atom at the β- or γ
-position relative to the nitrogen atom as the basic center can be easily prepared.
[0043] When R
2 comprises at least one oxygen atom, a hydroxyl-substituted alkyl group can be selected
preferably. Preferred examples may include 2-hydroxyethyl, 2-hydroxypropyl, 2-hydroxybutyl,
3-hydroxypropyl, 2-(2'-hydroxyethoxy)ethyl, 2-(2'-hydroxyethoxy)propyl, 3-(2'-hydroxyethoxy)propyl,
1-methyl-2-hydroypropyl and 2,3-dihydroxypropyl.
[0044] When R
2 comprise at least one nitrogen atom, an alkyl group having an amino group or an alkylamino
group as a substituent and having from 3 to 7 carbon atoms (including the carbon atoms
of the alkylamino group) can be preferably selected. Preferred examples may include
2-aminoethyl, 2-methylaminoethyl, 2-dimethylaminoethyl, 2-aminopropyl, 2-aminobutyl,
3-aminopropyl, 2-(2'-aminoethyl)aminoethyl and 4-(3'-aminopropyl)aminobutyl.
[0045] The base represented by the formula (1) may preferably have, as a part or all of
R
2n, a side chain having a structure represented by the following formula (2). The term
"a part of R
2n" may include, for example, when n stands for 2 in the formula (1), only one R
2 has the structure represented by the formula (2). The term "all of R
2n" may include both of R
2s having the structure of the formula (2) when n stands for 2, and R
2 having the structure of the formula (2) when n stands for 1.
[0046] In the formula (2), R
3, R
4, R
5, R
6, R
7 and R
8 each independently represents a hydrogen atom or a C
1-4 alkyl group, X represents a hydroxyl group, an amino group or an alkylamino group,
m stands for 0 or 1, and (N) is a symbol representing an attachment site to the nitrogen
atom of R
2. R
3 to R
8 each independently represents a hydrogen atom or a C
1-4 alkyl group and a total number of carbon atoms comprised in the formula (2) is preferably
7 or less.
[0047] As the formula (2), the nitrogen atom as the basic center is coupled to the oxygen
atom or nitrogen atom of the functional group represented by X in the formula (2)
via two or three carbon atoms therebetween so that a strong interaction attributable
to a hydrogen bond occurs between the nitrogen atom as the basic center and the functional
group X, and nucleophilicity of the nitrogen atom as the basic center is controlled
appropriately.
[0048] As a result, water solubility of the amide produced as a byproduct can be obtained
dominantly. In addition, even when a polymer being a target of deprotection and having
a phenolic hydroxyl group protected with an acyl group, has a functional group which
may undergo hydrolysis under a basic condition or is susceptible to a nucleophilic
reaction (for example, even when the polymer has an ester structure derived from an
aliphatic alcohol), a reaction condition under which only the deprotection of an acyl
group is performed without deterioration of the functional group can be selected.
Deterioration of even a trace of the ester structure derived from an aliphatic alcohol
may cause a great change in the physical properties of the polymer, but the risk of
causing the deterioration can be reduced effectively by using the amine compound represented
by the formula (2). In fact, pKa of n-butylamine is 10.6, while the first pKa of ethylene
diamine having an amino group at the β-position of the side chain is 9.9 and the pKa
of ethanolamine having a hydroxyl group at the β -position of the side chain is smaller
(pKa=9.5) and more preferable. The risk of causing a side reaction other than deacylation
can be suppressed. As described above, this effect is particularly marked when the
amine compound has a hydroxyl group. As shown later in Examples, a reaction rate in
the deprotection reaction of an acyl group is sufficiently great compared with triethylamine.
[0049] Preferable examples of the formula (2) in which X represents a hydroxyl group may
include 2-hydroxyethyl, 2-hydroxypropyl, 2-hydroxybutyl, 3-hydroxypropyl, 2-(2'-hydroxyethoxy)ethyl,
2-(2'-hydroxyethoxy)propyl, 3-(2'-hydroxyethoxy)propyl, 1-methyl-2-hydroxypropyl,
and 2,3-dihydroxypropyl. Preferable examples of the formula (2) in which X represents
an amino group may include 2-aminoethyl, 2-aminopropyl, 2-aminobutyl, 3-aminopropyl,
2-(2'-aminoethyl)aminoethyl and 4-(3'-aminopropyl)aminobutyl. Preferable examples
of the formula (2) in which X represents an alkylamino group may include 2-methylaminoethyl
and 2-dimethylaminoethyl. However, examples are not limited to the above examples.
[0050] Preferable examples of the primary or secondary amine compound used as a deprotecting
reagent may include ethanolamine, diethanolamine, methylethanolamine, ethylethanolamine,
2-propanolamine, 2-butanolamine, 3-propanolamine, 2-amino-1-butanol, 4-amino-1-butanol,
2-amino-2-methyl-1-propanol, 3-hydroxypiperidine, 2-amino-3-methyl-1-butanol, 6-amino-1-hexanol,
6-amino-2-methyl-2-heptanol, 4-hydroxypiperidine, diaminoethane, 1,2-diaminopropane,
1,3-diaminopropane, 1,2-diaminobutane, 2,3-diaminobutane and spermidine.
[0051] When the above-described amine compound is used for removal of the acyl group from
the polymer comprising a unit structure having a phenolic hydroxyl group protected
with an acyl group, and contains, in the side chain thereof, no primary or secondary
amino group other than the nitrogen atom as the basic center, the amine compound is
used preferably in an equimolar amount or greater relative to the acyl group to be
deprotected in order to have a high deprotection reaction rate. When the amine compound
contains a primary or secondary amino group in the side chain thereof, the reaction
due to the amino group can also be expected. For example, when the compound is 1,2-diaminoethane,
it is preferred to use 0.5 or more molar equivalent of 1,2-diaminoethane. A deprotection
reaction is performed usually by using from 1 to 50 molar equivalents, preferably
from 1.1 to 30 molar equivalents of an amine compound per the acyl group of the polymer
to be deprotected. The amount of a dibasic amine such as 1,2-diaminoethane may be
reduced to half, while the amount of tribasic amine may be reduced to one third. For
the deprotection reaction, one or more primary or secondary amine compounds each having
a ClogP value of 1.00 or less may be used singly or in combination.
[0052] The deprotection reaction of a polymer having a phenol hydroxyl group protected with
an acyl group by using the base, can be carried out while referring to the conventional
deprotection reaction using triethylamine with regard to the other condition (for
example,
JP 2002-062652A,
JP 2007-254495A,
JP 2003-084440A and
JP 2002-244297A).
[0053] The organic solvent to be used in the deprotection reaction may be preferably a solvent
capable of dissolving both the protected polymer and a deprotecting reagent therein
for enabling a homogeneous deprotection reaction.
[0054] As for selecting a solvent for the reaction, the reaction in the present invention
is presumed to differ in mechanism from a solvolysis reaction using triethylamine
so that a protic solvent such as water and alcohol is not essential. Nevertheless,
alcohol is a preferable solvent also in the acyl deprotecting reaction in the present
invention. Water may be added in the method of the present invention as long as the
water does not disturb the dissolution of the polymer.
[0055] Preferred examples of the solvent may include alcohol such as methanol, ethanol,
propanol and butanol (each, including a structural isomer thereof), ethylene glycol,
ethylene glycol monoalkyl ether, propylene glycol and propylene glycol monoalkyl ether;
ether such as diethyl ether, tert-butyl methyl ether, dibutyl ether, tetrahydrofuran,
1,4-dioxane, diglyme and propylene glycol monomethyl ether acetate; a polar aprotic
solvent such as N,N-dimethylformamide, N,N-dimethylacetamide, dimethylsulfoxide and
N-methylpyrrolidone; ester such as ethyl acetate and butyl acetate; ketone such as
acetone and 2-butanone; and nitrile such as acetonitrile. Further, adjustment of the
polarity of the solvent upon after treatment may be conducted here by using a hydrocarbon
such as hexane, heptane, benzene, toluene or xylene as another solvent.
[0056] Of these solvents, methanol, ethanol, isopropanol, tert-butyl methyl ether, dibutyl
ether, tetrahydrofuran, 1,4-dioxane and toluene are particularly preferred. Methanol
or ethanol is often used as a mixed solvent with the other solvent or solvents. The
solvents other than methanol and ethanol may also be used as a mixed solvent with
the other solvent or solvents.
[0057] In order to carry out the deprotection reaction completely, it is preferred to control
the reaction solvent in consideration of the physical properties of the polymer to
be deprotected, thereby causing no separation of the polymer before or after the reaction.
Use of the above-described solvent in an amount of from 1 to 5 parts by weight based
on 1 part by weight of the polymer can usually bring such a reaction.
[0058] The deprotection reaction may be performed by dissolving in the organic solvent the
protected polymer comprising at least a unit structure having a phenolic hydroxyl
group protected with an acyl group and a deprotecting reagent selected from primary
or secondary amine compounds having a ClogP value of 1.00 or less wherein neither
of the two carbon atoms coupled to the nitrogen atom of the amino group of the secondary
amine compound is tertiary, and then optionally heating the resulting solution.
[0059] The deprotection reaction may be performed under an atmospheric condition, but it
is preferred to perform the reaction under an inert gas atmosphere such as nitrogen
atmosphere or argon atmosphere from the standpoint of safety.
[0060] When the deprotection reaction is performed at, for example, 40 to 100°C, 99% or
greater of the acyl groups may be removed in 0.5 to 8 hours, mostly in from 1 to 3
hours.
[0061] The deprotected polymer may be taken out from the reaction mixture by controlling
the polymer concentration of the reaction mixture to cause precipitation with water
or may be taken out as a purified polymer solution by carrying out a partitioning
operation between a solution phase having the polymer dissolved therein and an aqueous
phase for extracting and removing the amine. Either method is commonly used and can
be carried out as follows.
[0062] In the case of precipitation with water, it is the common practice to concentrate
the reaction mixture under reduced pressure, remove water, if any, as much as possible
by using an ordinarily used azeotropic solvent such as ethanol, and remove also a
water-insoluble solvent, if any, as much as possible to obtain a solution of a water-soluble
solvent having a preferable polymer concentration, as a rough standard, of 20 to 50%
by weight. As the water-soluble solvent, methanol and acetone are most preferred,
but the other water-soluble solvent such as THF or acetonitrile may be used. A crystallized
and solidified polymer can be obtained by adding the resulting solution of the water-soluble
solvent dropwise to water of preferably 10 to 100 times the weight of the water-soluble
solvent used for dissolution of the polymer. In the method of the present invention,
the base having high water solubility may be used so that the base dissolves in the
aqueous phase easily. By this method, the polymer can be easily solidified. When a
trace of the base is removed, it can be removed completely by carrying out precipitation
with water of the polymer, which has solidified once, with a dilute aqueous solution
of a weak acid such as acetic acid.
[0063] Also in the purification by using the partitioning method making use of a solution
phase to be separated into two phases, when the reaction mixture is concentrated prior
to the partitioning treatment, an amount of the base lost by the concentration is
slight in comparison with that of triethylamine so that an appropriate amount of the
weak acid to be added to the aqueous phase for the removal of the base can be expected
rationally and easily. Accordingly, it is possible to reduce the risk of conducting
treatment with an excess acid and remove the base completely by means of an extraction
operation with the weak acid. The method of removing the base by using such a partitioning
method can be effected, for example, by concentrating the reaction mixture to about
from 0 to 10 times the weight of the solute; optionally adding a good solvent (such
as ethyl acetate, acetone or methanol) to the concentrate to prepare a polymer solution
having a polymer concentration of about 5 to 50% by weight; adding a weak acid such
as acetic acid in water to the polymer solution wherein the weight of the water is
1 to 25 times the weight of the solute and the weak acid is in an equimolar amount
(or in slightly excessive amount) to the amount of the base contained in the polymer
solution; mixing the resultant thoroughly; allowing the reaction mixture to stand;
and carrying out separation.
[0064] Moreover, the base used in the present invention is advantageous for a combination
of a fractionation technique in accordance with a partitioning method for removing
a low molecular compound and the above-described partitioning method (for example,
JP 2009-24122A). According to the partitioning method for the fractionation technique, a partitioning
operation is performed using an organic good-solvent phase (such as acetone, ethyl
acetate, propylene glycol monoethyl ether, propylene glycol monoethyl ether acetate
or THF) and an organic poor-solvent phase (such as pentane, hexane, heptane, cyclohexane
or toluene). According to the partitioning method for removing an organic base, a
partitioning operation is performed using an organic phase and a weakly acidic aqueous
phase. Compared with triethylamine, the base used in the present invention has a higher
selectivity of entering into the good solvent phase in the former and of entering
into the aqueous phase in the latter. This makes it possible to properly control the
amount of an acid used for the weakly acidic water phase. As a result, even when the
polymer has an acid-labile group, deterioration due to an excessive acid can be prevented.
When the polymer does not have an acid-labile group, a reliable removal of a base
component from the polymer solution is facilitated.
[0065] The partitioning operation for removing the low molecular compound can be conducted
referring to
JP 2009-24122A. For example, the partitioning operation can be conducted by dissolving the polymer-containing
solute in a organic good solvent wherein the weight ratio of the solute to the organic
good solvent is 1: (0.5 to 5), preferably 1: (0.7 to 3); adding an organic poor solvent
to the resulting solution wherein a weight of the organic poor solvent is 2 to 25
times the weight of the solute, preferably 2 to 15 times the weight of the solute;
mixing the resulting mixture thoroughly; allowing the reaction mixture to stand; and
carrying out separation.
[0066] The partitioning operation for removing the base component can be conducted as described
above, for example, by dissolving the polymer-containing solute in the organic good
solvent wherein the weight ratio of the solute to the organic good solvent is 1: (0.5
to 5); adding an weak acid in water thereto wherein the weight ratio of the solute
to the water is 1: (1 to 25) and the weak acid is in an equimolar amount (or slightly
excessive amount) relative to the base contained; mixing the resulting mixture thoroughly;
allowing the reaction mixture; and carrying out separation.
[0067] The present invention can provide a method of producing a base polymer for chemically
amplified resist comprising a step of carrying out the above deprotection method.
By using the method of deprotecting the protected polymer according to the present
invention, deprotection can be carried out reliably in a short period of time, and
when the resulting polymer is used for a chemically amplified resist, a change in
the resist performance due to the contamination which will adversely affect the catalyst
action of an acid can be prevented.
EXAMPLES
[0068] The present invention will hereinafter be described specifically. It should not be
construed that the present invention is limited to or by the following examples.
<Example 1>
[0069] A solution was prepared by placing 53.9g of acetoxystyrene, 9.7g of acenaphthylene,
36.3g of a monomer (3) which will be described below, 6.8g of dimethyl-2,2'-azobis-(2-methylpropionate)
(trade name "V601"; product of Wako Pure Chemicals) and 75g of toluene as a solvent
in a 300-mL dropping cylinder under a nitrogen atmosphere. Separately, 25g of toluene
was placed in a 500-mL polymerization flask under a nitrogen atmosphere and then the
solution prepared above was added dropwise to the flask over 4 hours while heating
the flask at 80°C. After completion of the dropwise addition, stirring was continued
for 20 hours while keeping the polymerization temperature at 80°C, followed by cooling
to room temperature. The polymerization solution thus obtained was added dropwise
to 1200g of hexane and a copolymer thus precipitated was collected by filtration.
The copolymer thus obtained by filtration was washed twice with 200 g of hexane and
provided for a subsequent reaction.
[0070] The copolymer (Polymer (X)) thus obtained was dissolved in 180g of THF (tetrahydrofuran)
and 60g of methanol in a 500-mL flask under a nitrogen atmosphere. To the resulting
solution was added 18.7g of ethanolamine and the resulting mixture was stirred at
60°C for 2.5 hours under a nitrogen atmosphere. The reaction mixture was concentrated
under reduced pressure. A solution obtained by dissolving the concentrate in 300g
of ethyl acetate was transferred to a separating funnel and a partitioning operation
was performed by adding 200g of water and 9.4g of acetic acid to the solution. The
lower layer thus obtained was then removed and a partitioning operation was performed
by adding 200g of water and 12.5g of pyridine to the resulting organic layer. The
lower layer thus obtained was then removed and the organic layer obtained was subjected
to water washing and partitioning by using 200g of water (the water washing and partitioning
were performed five times in total). (Partitioning with good separability was attained
by adding 30g of acetone with stirring for a while when the reaction mixture was allowed
to stand in each partitioning step). After the organic layer obtained by partitioning
was concentrated, the concentrate was dissolved in 140g of acetone. The resulting
acetone solution filtered through a 0.02-µm nylon filter was added dropwise to 1800g
of water and a precipitate thus obtained was filtered, washed with water, and dried
to obtain 82.0g of a white hydroxystyrene copolymer (Polymer 1). It is not necessary
to pass the solution through a nylon or UPE filter upon synthesis of the polymer when
defects of the polymer can be neglected particularly in semiconductor-related applications.
[0071] As a result of
1H-NMR analysis of the resulting copolymer, neither decomposition of the methacrylic
ester group of the copolymer nor an impurity derived from ethanolamine was detected.
<Example 2>
[0072] In the same manner as in Example 1 except for use of a monomer (4) instead of the
monomer (3), the polymerization reaction was conducted to obtain 78.0g of a white
polymer (Polymer 2).
[0073] As a result of
1H-NMR analysis of the resulting copolymer, neither decomposition of the benzoic acid
ester group of the copolymer nor an impurity derived from ethanolamine was detected.
<Example 3>
[0074] In the same manner as in Example 1 except for use of a monomer (5) instead of the
monomer (3), the polymerization reaction was conducted to obtain 75.0g of a white
polymer (Polymer 3).
[0075] As a result of
1H-NMR analysis of the resulting copolymer, neither decomposition of the methacrylic
ester group of the copolymer nor an impurity derived from ethanolamine was detected.
<Example 4>
[0076] A solution was prepared by placing 53.9g of acetoxystyrene, 9.7g of acenaphthylene,
36.3g of the monomer of the above formula (3), 6.8g of dimethyl-2,2'-azobis-(2-methylpropionate)
(trade name "V601"; product of Wako Pure Chemicals) and 75g of toluene as a solvent
in a 300-mL dropping cylinder under a nitrogen atmosphere. Separately, 25g of toluene
was placed in a 500-mL polymerization flask under a nitrogen atmosphere and then the
solution prepared above was added dropwise to the flask over 4 hours while heating
the flask at 80°C. After completion of the dropwise addition, stirring was continued
for 20 hours while keeping the polymerization temperature at 80°C, followed by cooling
to room temperature. The polymerization solution thus obtained was added dropwise
to 1200g of hexane and a copolymer thus precipitated was collected by filtration.
The copolymer thus obtained by filtration was washed twice with 200g of hexane and
provided for a subsequent reaction.
[0077] The copolymer thus obtained was dissolved in 180g of THF and 60g of methanol in a
500-mL flask under a nitrogen atmosphere. To the resulting solution was added 18.7g
of ethanolamine and the resulting mixture was stirred at 60°C for 2 hours under a
nitrogen atmosphere. The reaction mixture was concentrated and the concentrate was
dissolved in 120g of methanol and 25g of acetone. While stirring the resulting solution,
225g of hexane was added dropwise to the solution from a dropping funnel. Thirty minutes
later, 66g of tetrahydrofuran was added to the lower layer (polymer layer). While
stirring the resulting mixture, 230 g of hexane was added dropwise. Thirty minutes
later, the lower layer (polymer layer) was concentrated under reduced pressure. A
solution obtained by dissolving the concentrate in 300 g of ethyl acetate was transferred
to a partitioning funnel and a partitioning operation was performed by adding 200g
of water and 9.4g of acetic acid to the solution. The lower layer thus obtained was
then removed and a partitioning operation was performed by adding 200g of water and
12.5 g of pyridine to the resulting organic layer. The lower layer thus obtained was
then removed and the organic layer obtained was subjected to water washing and partitioning
by using 200g of water (the water washing and partitioning were performed five times
in total). (Partitioning with good separability was attained by adding 30g of acetone
with stirring for a while when the reaction mixture was allowed to stand in each partitioning
step).
[0078] After the organic layer obtained by partitioning was concentrated, the concentrate
was dissolved in 120g of acetone. The resulting acetone solution filtered through
a 0.02-µm nylon filter was added dropwise to 1800g of water and a crystallized precipitate
thus obtained was filtered, washed with water, and dried to obtain 70.0g of a white
hydroxystyrene copolymer (Polymer 4).
[0079] As a result of
1H-NMR analysis of the resulting copolymer, neither decomposition of the methacrylate
ester group of the copolymer nor an impurity derived from ethanolamine was detected.
<Example 5>
[0080] A solution was prepared by placing 60.5g of acetoxystyrene, 6.8g of indene, 32.7g
of 4-chlorostyrene, 6.5g of dimethyl-2,2'-azobis-(2-methylpropionate) (trade name
"V601"; product of Wako Pure Chemicals) and 108g of toluene as a solvent in a 300-mL
dropping cylinder under a nitrogen atmosphere. Separately, 43g of toluene was placed
in a 500-mL polymerization flask under a nitrogen atmosphere and then the solution
prepared above was added dropwise to the flask over 4 hours while heating the flask
at 80°C. After completion of the dropwise addition, stirring was continued for 20
hours while keeping the polymerization temperature at 80°C, followed by cooling to
room temperature. The polymerization solution thus obtained was added dropwise to
1500g of hexane and a copolymer thus precipitated was collected by filtration. The
copolymer thus obtained by filtration was washed twice with 300 g of hexane and provided
for a subsequent reaction.
[0081] The copolymer thus obtained was dissolved in 180g of THF and 60g of methanol in a
500-mL flask under a nitrogen atmosphere. To the resulting solution was added 22.3g
of ethanolamine and the resulting mixture was stirred at 60°C for 2.5 hours under
a nitrogen atmosphere. The reaction mixture was concentrated under reduced pressure.
A solution obtained by dissolving the concentrate in 300g of ethyl acetate was transferred
to a separating funnel and a partitioning operation was performed by adding 200g of
water and 11.2g of acetic acid to the solution. The lower layer thus obtained was
then removed and a partitioning operation was performed by adding 200g of water and
14.9g of pyridine to the resulting organic layer. The lower layer thus obtained was
then removed and the organic layer obtained was subjected to water washing and partitioning
by using 200g of water (the water washing and partitioning were performed five times
in total). (Partitioning with good separability was attained by adding 30g of acetone
with stirring for a while when the reaction mixture was allowed to stand in each partitioning
step). After the organic layer obtained by partitioning was concentrated, the concentrate
was dissolved in 130g of acetone. The resulting acetone solution filtered through
a 0.02-µm nylon filter was added dropwise to 1800g of water and a precipitate thus
obtained was filtered, washed with water, and dried to obtain 55.0g of a white hydroxystyrene
copolymer (Polymer 5). It is not necessary to pass the solution through a nylon or
UPE filter upon synthesis of the polymer when defects of the polymer can be neglected
particularly in semiconductor-related applications.
[0082] As a result of
1H-NMR analysis of the resulting copolymer, no impurity derived from ethanolamine was
detected.
<Comparative Referential Example 1>
[0083] In the same manner as in Example 1 except that deprotection was conducted according
to the conventional method by using methanolysis with triethylamine/methanol (reaction
for 40 hours at 60°C under a nitrogen atmosphere) instead of using ethanolamine, the
reaction was conducted to obtain 81.0g of a white polymer (Comparative Referential
Polymer 1).
<Comparative Referential Example 2>
[0084] In the a same manner as in Example 1 except that the polymerization reaction was
carried out by using indene and 4-chlorostyrene instead of acenaphthylene and the
monomer (3), respectively, and the polymer thus obtained was deprotected according
to the conventional deprotection method, that is, methanolysis using triethylamine/methanol
(reaction for 40 hours at 60°C under a nitrogen atmosphere), the reaction was conducted
to obtain 60.0g of a white polymer (Comparative Referential Polymer 2).
<Comparison Experiment 1 (Simple comparison Experiment between ethanolamine and n-butylamine)>
[0085] Ethanolamine and n-butylamine as a deprotecting agent were compared by using Polymer
(X) being obtained in Example 1 and still having an acetyl group. In the following
formulas, Me represents a methyl group.
[0086] Condition 1:
Under a nitrogen atmosphere, 10g of Polymer (X) was dissolved in 18g of THF and 6g
of methanol in a 100-mL flask. To the resulting solution was added 1.9 g of ethanolamine
and the resulting mixture was stirred at 60°C for 3 hours. The reaction mixture was
concentrated under reduced pressure and the concentrate thus obtained was dissolved
in 40g of acetone. The acetone solution was added dropwise to 1000g of water and a
crystallized precipitate thus obtained was filtered and dried to yield 7.0g of a white
hydroxystyrene copolymer (Polymer Z1).
[0087] Condition 2:
In the same manner as in "Condition 1" except that n-butylamine was used instead of
ethanolamine, the deprotection reaction was conducted to obtain 6.5g of a white hydroxystyrene
copolymer (Polymer Z2).
As a result of 1H-NMR analysis of Polymer Z1 and Polymer Z2, it was confirmed that the acetoxy-protected
group disappeared and a phenolic hydroxyl group appeared. In addition, ester decomposition
of the methacrylic acid ester group of the copolymer was not observed. However, 7.6
mol% of the amide (A) which was an impurity produced by the deprotection was observed
in Polymer Z1, while 10.6 mol% of the amide (B) was observed in Polymer (B). This
has revealed that compared with the amide (A), the amide (B) has high lipophilicity
and brings difficulty in purification.
<Comparison Test 2 (ethanolamine vs triethylamine)>
[0088] A deprotection reaction of Polymer (X) was performed by using the conventional method,
that is, methanolysis using triethylamine/methanol instead of ethanolamine (reaction
was conducted at 60°C for 20 hours under a nitrogen atmosphere). As a result of
1H-NMR analysis of the resulting copolymer, it was confirmed that 11.2 mol% of the
acetoxy-protected group remained when the reaction was conducted for 20 hours. This
suggests that a reaction time for 20 hours or more is necessary for the deprotection
reaction with triethylamine.
<Evaluation>
Preparation of resist
[0089] Resist materials were prepared by dissolving the polymer compounds (Polymers 1 and
5, and Comparative Referential Polymers 1 and 2) obtained above, an acid generator
(PAG-1) represented by the formula below, a basic compound (Base-1) and a crosslinking
agent in an organic solvent in accordance with the compositions as shown in Table
1, respectively. Each of the compositions thus obtained was filtered through 0.02-µm
nylon and UPE filters to prepare a solution of the positive or negative resist material.
<Acid generator>
[0090]
<Basic compound>
[0091] Base-1: tris(2-(methoxymethoxy)ethyl)amine N-oxide
<Crosslinking agent>
[0092] Tetramethoxymethyl glycoluril (TMGU)
<Surfactant>
[0093] Upon preparation of a resist material by using each composition, 0.075 weight parts
of "PF-636" (trade name; product of Omnova) was added as a surfactant.
<Organic solvent>
[0094] The organic solvents shown in Table 1 are PGMEA (propylene glycol monomethyl ether
acetate), EL (ethyl lactate), and PGME (propylene glycol monomethyl ether).
Table 1
|
Resin (weight part: |
acid generator |
base |
additive |
solvent1 |
solvent2 |
solvent3 |
|
wtp) |
(wtp) |
(wtp) |
(wtp) |
(wtp) |
(wtp) |
(wtp) |
Example 1 |
Polymer 1 |
PAG-1 |
Base-1 |
-- |
GMEA |
EL |
PGME |
(80) |
(8) |
(0.46) |
800) |
(800) |
(1000) |
Comp.Ref. |
Comp. Ref. |
PAG- 1 |
Base-1 |
-- |
PGMEA |
EL |
PGME |
Example 1 |
Polymer 1 (80) |
(8) |
(0.46) |
(800) |
(800) |
(1000) |
Example 5 |
Polymer 5 |
PAG- 1 |
Base-1 |
TMGU |
PGMEA |
EL |
PGME |
(80) |
(8) |
(0.46) |
(8.2) |
(800) |
(800) |
(1000) |
Comp. Ref. Example 2 |
Comp. Ref. |
PAG-1 |
Base-1 |
TMGU |
PGMEA |
EL |
PGME |
Polymer 2 (80) |
(8) |
(0.46) |
(8.2) |
(800) |
(800) |
(1000) |
Evaluation of electron beam lithography
[0095] Each of the positive resist materials thus prepared (in Examples 1 and 5 and Comparative
Referential Examples 1 and 2) was spin-coated on a 152-mm square mask blank having
a chromium oxynitride film on the uppermost surface by using "ACT-M" (trade name;
product of Tokyo Electron Limited), followed by prebaking on a hot plate at 110°C
for 600 seconds to prepare a resist film of 90 nm thick. The thickness of the resist
film thus obtained was measured using an optical measurement system "Nanospec" (trade
name; product of Nanometrics Incorporated). Measurement was conducted at 81 positions
within the surface of the blank substrate except the peripheral portion from the periphery
of the blank substrate to 10 mm inside thereof, and an average film thickness and
a thickness range were determined.
[0096] Further, the blank substrate was exposed using an electron beam exposure device (trade
name "EBM-5000 plus"; product of NuFlare Technology, Inc., acceleration voltage: 50
keV), baked at 110°C for 600 seconds as the post-exposure bake (PEB), and developed
with a 2.38% by weight aqueous solution of tetramethylammonium hydroxide, whereby
a positive-type or negative-type pattern was obtained. The resist pattern thus obtained
was evaluated in the following manner.
[0097] The substrate having the pattern formed thereon was observed with a top view SEM
(scanning electron microscope). An exposure dose at which a 200 nm 1:1 line and space
pattern was resolved at 1:1 was designated as the optimum exposure dose (µC/cm
2); a minimum dimension at the exposure dose at which a 200 nm line and space pattern
was resolved at 1:1 was designated as limiting resolution; and a line edge roughness
(LER) at 100 nm line and space was measured using SEM. Regarding the pattern shape,
whether it was rectangular or not was judged visually. Evaluation results of the resist
material of the present invention and the resist material for comparison in the EB
lithography are shown in Table 2.
Table 2
|
Optimum exposure dose (µC/cm2) |
limiting resolution (nm) |
line edge roughness (nm) |
shape of pattern |
Example 1 |
12.1 |
50 |
4.7 |
rectangular |
Comp.Ref. Ex. 1 |
12.5 |
50 |
4.8 |
rectangular |
Example 5 |
15.3 |
50 |
4.4 |
rectangular |
Comp. Ref. Ex. 2 |
15.4 |
50 |
4.5 |
rectangular |
[0098] As shown above in Table 2, the hydroxystyrene derivative obtained by deprotection
with the base according to the present invention is equivalent in sensitivity, resolution,
line edge roughness and pattern shape to the resin obtained by the conventional formulation.
It is evident that the production method according to the present invention can provide
resins equivalent to the conventional one at a high efficiency and is very useful.